The study examines the crisis resilience of startup companies in Hungary among the Visegrad countries as a result of the pandemic situation. It aims to provide guidance on what support is needed for startups in the post-crisis period to re-launch the economy and to contribute to the region’s economy with positive results. The research was carried out in two stages: first, in 2021 through an online survey, and then, in 2022 in-depth interviews due to the economic crisis caused by COVID-19 and the Russian–Ukrainian war. A mixed research methodology was used, which comprised an online questionnaire administered in the Crunchbase database (n = 97) and in-depth interviews among startup founders and experts of the startup ecosystem (n = 22). The research summarizes the V4 countries’ measures to protect entrepreneurship with a particular focus on startups. The research found that a crisis such as a pandemic did not have a uniformly negative impact on startups. The winners of the economic crisis are startups in IT, healthcare (Medtech. health-tech), e-commerce and digital education, while those who fared worst are startups in tourism and hospitality. The positive impact of the crisis has been a cleansing of the startup ecosystem. Business support measures supported the viable startups and helped them survive.

In addition to the technological aspects of FinTech solutions, it is important to consider user willingness, particularly among the digitally savvy Generation Z. We conducted a survey in Hungary and Poland to gather information on young people’s use of FinTech applications and their attitudes towards FinTech services. In our research, we built on the already known technology adoption model (UTAUT) and combined it with an attitudinal study. To determine the factors that influence the propensity to use these services, we developed a hypothetical model and tested it with the results of the first round of the survey (n = 117). CB-SEM was used to investigate the relationship between attitudes, social influence, and intention to use behavior. The paper presents the significant relationship characteristics, model structure, and potential business applications of the results.

In response to the rapid and dynamic changes in the economic environment, companies must improve their processes to maintain competitiveness. This includes enhancing their intellectual capital, with particular emphasis on effective onboarding processes, which play a crucial role in integrating new employees and retaining talent. This enhances the value of the organization’s intellectual capital and emphasizes onboarding—the training and integration of new employees—whose proper functioning impacts staff retention. Drawing on both Hungarian and predominantly foreign literature, we highlight onboarding processes and examine their implementation in Hungarian companies of various sizes. The research employed a mixed-method approach, combining semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. In-depth interviews were conducted with HR leaders from 13 Hungarian organizations to explore the existence of mentoring programs. Additionally, 161 employees across Hungary completed questionnaires, which examined their perspectives on onboarding processes and the relationship between mentoring programs and company size. We analyzed the data using chi-square tests to assess the strength of these relationships. While all large companies in our sample had formal mentoring programs, smaller companies displayed more variability, with some relying on informal or ad-hoc onboarding processes. Based on these results, we identified several key areas for improvement in onboarding processes. These include enhancing the structure of feedback interviews, ensuring more comprehensive communication channels, and strengthening mentoring programs across companies of all sizes. By addressing these gaps, companies can improve employee retention, engagement, and overall integration during the onboarding process, contributing to a more stable and motivated workforce.

Healthcare delivery depends not only on technical expertise but also on the willingness of clinicians to speak up and to support one another in demanding environments. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory, this study explores how prosocial voice fosters helping behavior through the energizing role of work passion, and how ethical leadership shapes this process. Using a three-wave, multi-source design, we obtained 306 matched employee-leader dyads from public hospitals. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that prosocial voice enhanced work passion, which in turn predicted helping behavior. Mediation analysis confirmed the indirect effect, while moderation results revealed that ethical leadership amplified the passion-helping relationship, producing a significant conditional indirect effect. These findings extend theoretical work by positioning passion as a motivational mechanism that explains how voice translates into prosocial outcomes, and by showing that ethical leadership provides the contextual support necessary for this process. These results provide practical guidance for strengthening supportive climates and leadership practices that enable clinicians' discretionary contributions.

Purpose: This study utilizes intellectual capital theory (ICT) to examine the impact of intellectual agility, digital creativity, platform readiness, algorithmic autonomy support, networking competence and emotional congruence on the social media reuse likelihood of employees. This study also explores the moderating role of platform literacy between intellectual capital dimensions and social media reuse likelihood. Design/methodology/approach: This study employed a cross-sectional, quantitative research design by collecting data from 300 employees working across diverse industries. Covariance-based structured equation modelling is used to analyse the data and test the hypotheses. Findings: The findings demonstrate that intellectual agility, digital creativity, platform readiness and algorithmic autonomy significantly shape the social media reuse likelihood of employees. The results also established the moderating role of platform literacy between digital creativity, networking competence and social media reuse likelihood. Originality/value: This study offers a novel framework grounded in intellectual capital theory by integrating dimensions of human capital, structural capital, relational capital and platform literacy to predict the social media reuse likelihood of employees in technology-centred workplaces.

With the help of a detailed survey, this article aims to examine how effective communication can aid the lean transformation process within a company. Lean methodologies enable companies to create processes and systems that are so efficient that they give them a significant competitive advantage in the marketplace. On the one hand, these improvements can be made by reducing costs and losses and, on the other, by increasing value to the customer. In this study, a survey was carried out in Hungary among 20 Hungarian companies with lean practices, collecting more than 800 employee responses and focusing on the benefits of lean practices in manufacturing companies. Both managers and employees expressed the same opinion, highlighting the importance of communication in the transformation process. The research was conducted among companies with lean experience, and the results and conclusions described can be applied to the lean implementation projects of Hungarian manufacturing companies. Lean practitioners identified communication as almost as important as team composition and management commitment. The research showed that the success of the transformation depends not only on implementing but also on sustaining and remaining dedicated to change, which is only feasible with the right form and frequency of communication.